I remember the first time I heard about the umbrella of protection. It was when I was 13, at my first Basic Seminar. My younger sisters taught me about it initially. They had gotten the Children’s Institute lesson with the umbrella illustrations. It seemed simple and made sense to a child. Parents, church leaders, political leaders… they were all there to protect me, just like an umbrella protects us from the rain. If I didn’t listen to and obey the instructions of those placed in authority over me, I would not be protected from the rain of “the enemy” and “the world”.
According to the ATI Family Support Link website, “An umbrella is designed to provide protection from various elements of nature: rain, hail, snow, wind, or sunshine. As long as a person is under an umbrella, he finds shelter from harsh weather conditions. If he steps out from under the umbrella, he exposes himself to the environment.”
“God-given authorities can be considered ‘umbrellas of protection.’ By honoring and submitting to authorities, you will receive the privileges of their protection, direction, and accountability. If you resist their instructions and move out from their jurisdictional care, you forfeit your place under their protection and face life’s challenges and temptations on your own.”
Not submitting to those in authority is equated to rebellion, which is further equated to witchcraft through the twisted application of one Scripture: “Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft” (I Samuel 15:23). Additionally, Gothard claims that resistance to God-given authorities will bring God’s judgment upon you.
When I was 18, I went to Mexico for a 5-month discipleship training school with YWAM (Youth with a Mission). It was one of the best experiences of my life. I felt closer to God then ever before and I felt a calling to stay with YWAM doing medical missions work. I felt impressed by God that when the school was over, I should go home, raise funds, and go back to Mexico to live and learn Spanish through immersion. I had met a family there that was happy to take me in, and had friends in the village from the church where my YWAM group had ministered.
Upon returning home, I enthusiastically shared my vision with my parents. They thought about it, and then my mother approached me several days later. She insisted that I should go to college first and go into nursing. But that was a complete different direction from my plan. She thought that it would be better for me to have a medical degree so I could be more prepared for medical missions work. Additionally, she didn’t feel comfortable with me just moving to Mexico without solid plans in place. It was a clear fork in the road for me: the path that my parental authority figures thought was right versus the path that my heart desired to follow. Either choice would lead me in a completely different direction in life than the other.
Ultimately, I submitted to my parents’ wishes. I know they had only the best intentions in mind, and the advice my mom gave me makes a lot of sense now to me. At the time, however, it made me wonder if I had heard God correctly. I thought He wanted me to go back to Mexico right away. But my parents heard differently, and that shook my faith.
Since Authority is one of the “Basic Life Principles” in the seminars, it is taught as “one of the universal and non-optional Biblical principles of life”. Submitting to authority is heavily emphasized within ATI/IBLP. It’s a teaching that was drilled into my head from that day until the day I married my husband.
Due to this teaching, I did not develop my own opinions or religious beliefs until years after I left home. The moral decisions that were easy to maintain under my parents’ watchful eyes became much more of a challenge to maintain far away from them. At home, I was very good at appearing to comply, but my heart wasn’t convinced of the truth of some of my parents’ convictions. I had no idea how to defend my spiritual beliefs when questioned, because I did not “own” those beliefs. Scriptures and principles were simply drilled into my head as trivia to be memorized. Head knowledge does not automatically become heart knowledge. My faith had never been truly tested until I moved away from my family.
I’ve also struggled in how to relate to my professors at college and bosses at work. When they were demanding, unkind, or unreasonable, I would merely try to deal with it, because I did not know how to discuss my issues with them. I was afraid that it would be perceived as disrespectful. I was afraid to ask a question because I thought that I should already know what was expected, and then I would be scorned. I was scared to express an opinion because I felt that it was bad to have ideas that differed from the normal standard.
The problem of submitting blindly to authority is that “When a leader fails, he is no longer protecting those under his care, and therefore they are exposed to the attacks of Satan. Those under authority may feel the impact of the leader’s failure so acutely that they notice the problem even before the leader himself is aware of it. The attacks of the enemy can be manifested in many forms, including health problems, overwhelming temptations, unusual cycles of doubt or depression, nightmares, or unexplained conflicts.” This statement from the ATI Family Support Link website is quite intriguing, considering the many people under the authority of Gothard’s own teachings who have experienced these types of symptoms.
By blindly trusting those who are in authority over us, we also trust that they somehow will stay on track spiritually and make the right decisions. In my opinion, this is an irresponsible choice for a Christian and an individual. We each have the responsibility to own the decisions we make and the choices we take. To divert the privilege of that is to become a victim. It gives us reason to become resentful or bitter, which ironically defeats the whole purpose of the principle.
Equally amazing, was the freedom and stability I was able to find for myself, upon getting out from under the leaky umbrella. Not such a great concept after all, especially since those who demand we stay under the umbrella for an extended period of time, often have maladaptive issues of their own, obscuring their ability to be effective "umbrellas".
The concept of the umbrella is surely flawed. There is a difference in honoring and respecting your parents and age, of course, does play a factor in when to obey your parents and when not too. The idea of the "umbrella of protection" suggests that we can be protected from hurtf as long as we do or don't do certain things. And there is some truth in that, but overall, the Bible certainly paints a different picture for us. We are told that "in this world, we will have trials and tribulations and not to be surprised by it." We are even told not to let the trials surprise us. It doesn't say to stay under the "umbrella of protection" and you'll be exempt. No wonder so many are suprised when heartaches come.
This will seem like a ridiculous question and I mean this with utmost sincerity, but has Mr. Gothard ever claimed to be an "authority" over us? I can understand why he might claim that (although in a very sublime sense) to be true to those young adults working at headquarters or the various campuses, but over grown Christians and/or families? Although we were always a very "tertiary" ATI family I don't recall in any seminars,videos, or publications that he did. If he has, that is huge and we need to completely pull out. God's word has made it very clear who our authorities are and Mr. Gothard is not one of them.
Carol, I don't think it sounds ridiculous at all. I don't know if Gothard claims that in public. I have heard ATI dads claim that Gothard is in authority over them, which is of course not the same as Gothard saying it. But I believe the notion is very much in the air. For example, if a man wouldn't shave his beard, he was "resisting authority." Same for TV, if you didn't get rid of it you were resisting authority. My memory is now fuzzy on the black and white details but I know that as a kid, I definitely had the impression that ATI considered themselves in a position of authority and they asked for submission from the families. Of course, for the students who were on a mission trip or at a Training Center, the chain of authority was explicit and pervasive, all the way up to Gothard.
Gothard seems mild-mannered on stage but he has a quietly fierce personality in person. You do not tell him no - in fact, you learn not to even ask him real questions. He surrounds himself with yes-men. The whole organization is marinated in a focus on authority and submission. So while I doubt Gothard ever tells dads "I am your authority, you will listen to me" (it's better if you read that in a Darth Vader voice), I don't know how anyone in the system would come to any other conclusion. Gothard doesn't have opinions - he has rhemas straight from God. He is not a counselor, he is Moses on the mountain. He doesn't come alongside and help you become a better you, he believes everyone should be stamped out of the same 10-steps-for-this and 12-steps-for-that mold.
(I typing this in a lighthearted mood, I hope it doesn't sound vindictive. I am being painfully honest but I don't intend to be mean.)
Appreciate the excellent reply and food for thought. Thank you.
I'm pretty sure he considered himself an authority over the students while they were at a training center. Not sure whether he actually thought the same for families, or not.
When I worked at Headquarters Mr.Gothard was very emphatic in telling us girls that we were placed under his authority while there by our fathers. He specifically told us not to call home complaining to our Dads.
Great post, Joy! This one resonated with me. I love your closing paragraph and agree with every word of it.
My parents meant well but I received some deep wounds from some very hurtful things they did. I kept thinking it was my fault because I had been specifically taught that being "under the umbrella" would protect me from pain. I tried hard to be "submissive" which often actually equated to being passive and disappearing inside myself as a person. Much later, I would learn that when someone repeats a cycle of taking out their anger on you, you will never find the magical way to submit that will make them happy.
Carol, Mr. Gothard has referred to himself as God's annointed. Other people who follow him have referred to him as God's annointed. When you arrive at a training center you are immediately under the "protection and guidance" of the "authorities" at the training center as well as ultimately Mr. Gothard as the "authority" of the ministry. So whether or not he says he is in authority or not he definitely has lived that authority position. If you don't have anything to do with training centers you may be able to get by without seeing and experiencing the problems. It is easier to pick and choose the teachings to follow and to what extreme you follow them.
Yeah, I'm beginning to see that, Grace. Thank you for responding.
In light of some earlier comments here, I was reminded of an archived story from Christianity Today that speaks to the fact that Mr. Gothard is in charge and does not receive feedback well.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2003/marchweb-only/3-3-33.0.html
Here is one quote from it:
In reflecting on all this, Brown said that the board, as an entity, had learned nothing about the institute's finances in the 10 years he was a member of it. He said the board was not told what anyone on the staff (which numbered about 70 before the recent flood of resignations) was being paid other than Bill, whose $600 a month has been widely noted. Brown said that as a board, "All we did was rubber-stamp the recommendations of the president." A seminar brochure states that "All funds are carefully controlled by a board of directors …
I keep coming to this website for comfort. I am married to an abusive man,not physically, but verbally, emotionally, and spiritually. The teachings of Gothard on authority just gave my husband more fuel for the fire. If I disagree with any decision he makes for our family, he says I am being rebellious, and rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. He threw one of our sons out of the house because he questioned his father and resisted in areas he felt his father was overbearing. This son had less than $50, no high school education, no driver's license. I am pleased to say that he's doing all right now.
We were parents who enrolled our family in ATI when it was pretty young. It all seemed so exciting. We were in about ten years, the eldest son worked at headquarters for a while(to get away from the abusive home).
We have been away from the institute now for over 18 years, but there are some things my husband never got past. He is big on his authority in the family, but let anyone begin to confront him on his mistreatment of me and the children, and he's off to another church. And his "reasons" for leaving are so "spiritual".
Right now we are in a great conflict, and I am resisting him in a serious way for the first time ever in our marriage. Our pastor began to work with him in a one-on-one discipleship. As Pastor got closer to addressing his problem, my husband began to avoid him more and more. Then, he quit the church altogether. For nine months he didn't attend church
[…] the men in their lives are tasked with their protection. If women in any way step outside of their umbrella of protection, whether it be through having a difference of belief or falling into “sin” or speaking […]